McLaren Fires Up Its First Ever Renault Formula 1 Engine

A few days after hearing Mercedes and Ferrari fire up their 2018 F1 engines, we now get a new treat courtesy of McLaren.

Could it be that the reason why we don’t actually get to see the engine is because it was already installed in the 2018 car? If so, it makes sense to keep it out of sight since the team is expected to feature a very different livery this season that has yet to be revealed.

Now back to the Renault engine getting fired up. It was definitely a big moment for the Woking-based team that wants to make a considerable jump this season from the middle of the pack to the top end, close or equal to the title favorites.

The British outfit is certainly encouraged after working with Renault on the new engine. In fact, according to F1i, chief engineering officer Matt Morris said that the biggest difference between Renault and Honda is that the former are more experienced.

“Those guys on the ground have been doing it for a lot longer than Honda, that is just a fact, and that is what allowed us to get the packaging done so quickly. It is just their experience and the same is true in their factory at Viry. It is more mature than Honda. It might not have as many fancy dynos, but they have more experience.”

McLaren will unveil their Renault-powered Formula 1 car on February 23rd – that is, next Friday.